


Between Crimson And Smoke

by Kissed_by_Circe



Series: Some Things Blossom In The Dark [2]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Best Friends, Beta Wanted, Light Angst, everyone's clueless af
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-21
Updated: 2018-09-21
Packaged: 2019-07-15 04:35:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16055657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kissed_by_Circe/pseuds/Kissed_by_Circe
Summary: “Aehm, kind of. It’s actually not about you, she’s just in love with Gendry, and you’re- ow, fuck, Ary-“ A loud thud and crackling noises interrupts him, and, judging from the turmoil she hears, she detects that his phone has fallen to the floor while Arya is trying to smother him with a pillow. “No, NO, not my hair, my beautiful hair-“ “I’m going to kill you, you idiot!”“ARYA MINISA GERTRUDE STARK, STOP HURTING MY BOYFRIEND!” Several pairs of eyes stare at her and Gendry slips out from under the hood at her outburst, looking at her with concern shining in his eyes. She smiles at them apologetically before she presses the phone to her ear again. “Give me Arya. Now.”Arya’s in love with Gendry, he’s in love with her, but they’re both oblivious, so Jon and Sansa help them a bit.





	Between Crimson And Smoke

**Author's Note:**

> This oneshot is set in the 810s/the Westerosi version of ours 2010s...
> 
> Jon Aemon Snow *783AC  
> Gendry Waters *784AC  
> Sansa Lyarra Stark *786AC  
> Arya Minisa Stark *789AC

King’s Landing, 808AC

 

Arya practically throws herself into one of the ridiculous velvet armchairs her sister loves so much – ‘they’re vintage, they’re classics, they don’t cost much, they look good with everything, trust me, I have a degree in interior design’, she’s said – and props her feet, still in mud splattered combat boots, up on the coffee table, ignoring Jon’s raised eyebrow and his pointed look.

 

Jon’s become a tad bit boring since he joined the police and he’s slowly turning into a real-life Amy Santiago, but Arya has to admit that the chairs really _are_ comfortable as fuck. And she can understand why he allows Sansa to redecorate their house, from the full fridge and the ceiling high stacks of brownies in the kitchen over the perfectly organised shelves and cupboards and shopping lists to the soft whispers in the night she heard when she and Sansa still lived together and her sister and Jon would comfort each other after nightmares full of blood and bullets and brutal boyfriends long gone.

 

And she sees their happiness. The way they look at each other, like they’ve found something unbelievably precious, their gentle touches and the honesty in their voices when they tell each other how much they love each other. Arya envies her sister, she’s jealous of the surety in her voice when she tells her that she’s going to marry Jon one day and that they’ll have children and have a happy ever after. Jon made her believe in love again, and there’s not the slightest trace of uncertainty when they talk about their future.

 

But she doesn’t want to think about her sister’s perfect love life or her insta-worthy home. No, she’s here for something else, and so she ignores the crease forming between Jon’s brows and dives right in. “Your _girlfriend_ is having brunch with Gendry. _Again_. That’s the third time this month.” “And?” Apparently, Jon chooses to ignore her feet on his coffee table – _for now_ – and just looks at her through his horn-rimmed glasses and over the newspaper the same way her father looked at Sansa when she subtly, but not really subtly, mentioned a house party one of her friends or classmates was throwing.

 

“She’s been spending a shit-ton of time with him recently. Gendry’s a guy, and you know what people say, ‘men and women can’t be friends, at least not without benefits’.” “So you’re trying to tell me that my girlfriend is sleeping with Gendry. And Domeric. And Pod. And Sam, who’s my best friend. As if. Sansa has some guy friends, but they’re just that: friends. All completely platonic. You don’t have to worry about her cheating on me, she’s loyal, she’d never do that to me.”

 

“But if they don’t do _‘the thing’_ then why would they spend so much time together? And why would they go brunching? That’s a couple’s thing, that’s so _romantic_ or whatever.” “She spends just as much time with him as with Margery. Same goes for Jeyne and Beth. Seven hells, they even have a brunch club kind of thing and have breakfast together in a small café across from Sansa’s building almost every day.”

 

Arya groans and presses her face into one of the pillows. Its dark emerald colour is quite pretty, but it only reminds her more of Sansa and the fact that she ~~loves~~ hates her – she’s just so confused right now, and Jon isn’t really helping her. “Yeah, but they’re girls, and they are a _group_ – there’s no romance in having breakfast with your girl gang, that’s more in the ‘#squad goals department’.”

 

“So you think that it’s okay for Sansa to go out with her girls, but not with guys? Do you really think she’d try and seduce Sam or Pod?” “No, but that’s because she’s completely out of their league. I like Sam and Pod, but a girl like Sansa wouldn’t cheat on the, quote ‘hottest police officer of all of KL’ with them.”

 

“Wait, she called me the hottest police officer in KL? Did she really say that?” At that, she punches the pillow, instead of his face, because she wants to wipe the smug grin of his stupid face, but she also wants to talk to him about it, and that could be a bit difficult when he’s pressing a cool rag to his bleeding nose, she knows from experience.

 

“Urgh, you’re such an idiot. Gendry’s the only hot guy she’s hanging out with, so of course she’s cheating on you with him.” He raises his eyebrows at her statement, clearly trying not to laugh out loud. “Really? Gendry, the only hot guy she’s friends with?” And then he’s laughing, with tears in his eyes, panting like an old dog and slapping his thighs, not a sound coming from him.

 

“Wow, but for real? She has so many handsome friends that I sometimes wonder how she chose someone like _me_. Like, Dickon Tarly is a fucking underwear model. Domeric Bolton refuses to go on stage without an _umbrella_ because of all the panties his fans throw at him. And have you ever seen Willas Tyrell? I may be straight as an arrow, but even I- erm, never mind. Like, Gendry is quite good-looking and all, and he’s really nice, but he’s definitely not Sansa’s hottest friend. And he’s totally not her type.”

 

He still looks so smug, and so sure of himself, because Sansa would never cheat on him, because she loves him too much, and they both know it. And Sansa’s fidelity is none of Arya’s business. But Gendry is. She yells it.

 

“Gendry is mine. My type, I mean.”, she classifies when she sees the confusion on Jon’s face. “Wait, wait, wait. _Wait_. Are you trying to tell me that Gendry Waters is your type?” Her ‘yes’ is so quiet he almost doesn’t hear it, and then she slops down in her chair and presses a cushion to her face once more, groaning into it. “I’m in love with him. I’m in love with Gendry Waters.”

 

“Wow.” She can’t see Jon, but she can imagine just how baffled he looks. “Did you tell him?” Her answer is short, a small ‘no’ while she lifts the pillow from her face for half a moment before she lets it fall back in place. “Why don’t you tell him?” How can he be so blind, how can he be so stupid? “Maybe because he spends so much time with Sansa? Who is, by the way, _beautiful_ , sweet, kind, smart, and oh, did I mention, _a generally wonderful person_?”

 

“Okay, so in conclusion – you’re in love with Gendry, who is a good guy, but you think that he fancies Sansa?” “Yes. What should I do now?” “To be honest – I have no fucking idea. We should ask Sansa.”

 

* * *

 

Gendry’s trapped in the hood drier next to her, and so Sansa leans back in her chair and relaxes while she gets her toenails done. They only wanted to have brunch together – he _loves_ croissants and mimosas – but they weren’t done talking when they finished their third? forth? mimosa, and somehow, they ended up at a spa. Not that she minds. But she needs some time to think about all the things he’s told her.

 

Gendry Waters, her best friend, is in love with her little sister. Nothing new. Completely okay for her. He’s a good guy and she knows that his feelings for Arya are genuine. _They could be such a cute couple_. If there weren’t some problems, namely

 

1) Gendry’s fear of fucking things up that keeps him from making a move

 

2) the possibility of Arya not liking him _that way_ , which could ruin their friendship

 

3) the fact that Arya hasn’t talked to her in _weeks_ , so the chances of her finding out if Arya like-likes him are slimmer than slim

 

This is a fucking dilemma. It’s her _duty_ as Gendry’s bestie and Arya’s sister to set them up, because she _knows_ that Arya wants a relationship, and they would be perfect for each other. And maybe Gendry would help set things straight between them. Their sisterly relationship had been so good the last few years, after Arya had moved into her apartment in KL, and after the whole thing with Joff they had started to actually talk to each other, spent time together, shared secrets.

 

And then, a few weeks back, Arya had stopped texting her. Stopped coming over to Jon and Sansa’s house for pizza night. She even saw ‘Infinity War’ without her, despite her knowing that Sansa _loved_ Peter Quill – and his beautiful body – almost as much as she loved Jon! And the worst thing was that she had no idea why Arya hated her so much now, nor what had caused this act of sisterly betrayal!

 

When Gendry had told her about his feelings for the first time, she’d already seen their future – like Lily from HIMYM saw the front porch of her retirement home, or the Buckingham Palace PR department saw Meghan Markle – and she’d been so _happy_ , because her sister and her best friend? What could be better?

 

She’d been so happy and now everything is falling apart and – her phone rings.

 

“Jon, sweetheart, hi. We somehow ended up in that spa in the street of the sisters, the one next to that Pentoshi place you like so much…”

 

“Are you with Gendry? Can you talk? About Gendry…?”

 

“Um, yes, but what – what are you talking about? Do you want me to bring take-out?“

 

“Yes. To the take-out, I mean. Honey-bun, is Gendry the hottest of your friends?”

 

“Erm.” She looks over to where Gendry is sitting in his chair, his face hidden by the hood drier, “well, he _is_ handsome, but – you know that I’m friends with Dickon and Domeric, so why would you ask something like that?”

 

“Haw haw. Arya didn’t believe me.” She doesn’t see him, but she doesn’t need to to know that he has the smuggest grin on his face.

 

“Is she with you? Did you talk about why she doesn’t talk to me anymore?” Her voice is quiet and small, and she hates herself for the hope that laces her words.

 

“Aehm, kind of. It’s actually not about you, she’s just in love with Gendry, and you’re- ow, fuck, Ary-“ A loud thud and crackling noises interrupts him, and, judging from the turmoil she hears, she detects that his phone has fallen to the floor while Arya is trying to smother him with a pillow. “No, NO, _not my hair_ , my beautiful hair-“ “I’m going to _kill_ you, you idiot-!” “ARYA MINISA GERTRUDE STARK, STOP HURTING MY BOYFRIEND!”

 

Several pairs of eyes stare at her and Gendry slips out from under the hood at her outburst, looking at her with concern shining in his eyes. She smiles at them apologetically before she presses the phone to her ear again. “Give me Arya. Now. Hey, sister dearest”, her words are sweet like honey, “is it true what Jon told me? Are you 100% sure and serious about it? Okay, well, I’ll take care of it. Just stay where you are, and leave Jonny’s hair alone, okay? I love his curls. Perfect, bye.”

 

“I’ll go get some flowers while your nails dry, Waters.”, she yells over her shoulder while storming out of the salon. “I’m back in 10, and then you’re going over to my place and confess your feelings to my sister. And yes, before you ask – I’m going to force you to give her some flowers.”

 

* * *

 

King’s Landing, 820AC

 

“… and then he came to our apartment, and Arya waited on the sidewalk, because she was so nervous. When she saw him, and the huge bouquet your auntie San bought for him, she almost fainted.” Jon raises his eyebrows dramatically and then proceeds to whisper: “He gave her the flowers, and she threw them away. I was so shocked, we all were. She just threw them in my direction, and the bouquet hit me straight in the face, it almost knocked me out, and I went down screaming, clutching the roses that were trying to eat my face – that’s how I got that scar in my eyebrow -” He almost falls out of his armchair, and the five tiny girls in front of him gasp, Sarra even hides her face behind her chubby hands.

 

“Are you trying to scare of our nieces and babies, Banana-Boo? Is his story too scary for you?” Aly and Danny both shake their heads, and her own daughters just shrug, unfazed by their papa’s antics, but baby Sarra climbs into her aunt’s lap. “You tell us! ‘bout mama and papa’s first kiss!” “Oh.” Sansa smiles and hugs her niece closer to her. “Well, your papa wanted to tell your mama that he loved her, and when he gave her some pretty flowers, she had Jon hold them so that she could hug and kiss your papa.”

 

“Tz, no. She threw them at me so that she could climb poor Gendry like a tree.” “Jon!”, Arya yells from the kitchen, “How ‘bout you stop talking shit!”, followed by a loud “Swear jar!” by Gendry, and Sansa rolls her eyes, but smiles at her fiancé, love shining in her eyes. “How about we look at some photo albums, for a change? Then we can see what your parent’s wedding was like. I was the maid-of-honour, did you know that? And your papa will be my man-of-honour.”

 

The five little girls all sigh, their eyes dreamy.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for all the kudos and sweet comments <3


End file.
